Welcome back to Thrak Attack! What's your adventure? So it's been a little while but this week we have an actual adventure. Like for real traveling to a destination (or several) and exploring what that place has to offer. So because this post is so massive let us dive right in! Just so you're aware, no pictures in this post just because it's too big. If you want to see pictures from the trip, follow us on Facebook or Instagram!
I woke up on Friday, trimmed the tree in my front yard and got my final packing done. My girlfriend took me to the airport and dropped me off. I was flying from Phoenix to London that afternoon. A solid 10 hour flight. I wanted to keep moving so I wandered around the airport until it was time to get on the plane. On the 10 hour flight I played some Fire Emblem: Three Houses (still playing it by the way), I watched "A Star is Born" which was fine but not great, listened to Tool's "Fear Inoculum", and took plenty of naps. I got off the plane at the London Heathrow airport (which is a dumb airport, by the way) and took another flight to Paris. I got an uber from the airport when I landed to my Airbnb and was greeted by Frieza on the side of the building. I grabbed a bite to eat and a beer and met up with my sister and her fiancé.
From there we wandered around Paris and walked by Hotel De Ville, Notre Dame, Tower of St. Jacques, and took the Batobus down the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower. Then we had dinner with my parents and other sister and I had some escargot (which is delicious, by the way) and a beer. Then I passed out in the Airbnb on the pull out couch.
Day 2 took us to the Louvre which is the largest art museum in the world (I have been to the second largest the Hermitage last year, by the way) and saw some beautiful pieces of art including Liberty Leading the People, Raft of Medusa, Winged Nike, The Cheating Ace, Venus de Milo, the Sphinxes of Egypt, that weird guy from the memes, and of course the Mona Lisa. It was an amazing experience and a lot to take in but for me the highlight was Liberty Leading the People. It's such an iconic piece of art and so important to Paris and the French in depiction of one of their most important time periods. Naturally the magnet from Paris was of that painting. After that we had lunch by the Eiffel Tower, walked up the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triumph, had dinner, and then saw the Eiffel Tower at night which is one of the most beautiful sites. No wonder why it is the most iconic building of all time!
Day 3 took us to Disneyland Paris which was a weird move but super important for me to go to because I wanted too. Now let me say this... We got our tickets at youth price (60 euros a piece) because 3 major attractions were shut down (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, It's a Small World, and Autopia) but during the day many other attractions also broke down including Hyperspace Mountain, Star Tours, and they shut down Fantasyland an hour before the fireworks so it was kind of a 1/2 day park. But regardless here's the schedule of attractions and what I thought (also there were a lot of walk through attractions that were really cool, by the way)
1. Main Street- Just entering the park and seeing the castle itself is an attraction!
2. Big Thunder Mountain- The best one in the world with that underwater section!
3. Phantom Manor- My favorite attraction at the park, such a unique story!
4. Pirates of the Caribbean- which is the same in a different order.
5. Adventure Isle- Skull Rock, Davy Jones Locker, and the Jolly Roger, oh my!
6. Passage of Aladdin- a cute walk through of the story of Aladdin.
7. Jungle Book Jive- The best day time show I have seen at a Disney park!
8. Toad Hall- Fish and Chips for lunch at a lovely themed restaurant!
9. Sleeping Beauty Castle- Stained Glass and the Dragon's Lair
10. Hyperspace Mountain- I wish it wasn't Star Wars themed but it was still legit
11. Philharmagic- Always a fun time but also a weird spot for it!
12. Timon an Pumba- Yassa Chicken for dinner
13. Boot Hill- Cemetery by Phantom Manor
14. Disney Dreams- a beautiful nighttime spectacular
it seems like a full day but I just felt like we didn't get to a lot or couldn't do as much as we could have done but I still thoroughly enjoyed my time there!
Day 4 we flew to Rome and started our afternoon off with some Pizza and more beer. Then we went to the Vatican City. I am catholic but I do not actively go to mass. This was a cool place to visit and had a lot of great artwork and churches but honestly, I was underwhelmed with the experience. The highlights were the Sistine Chapel which has just breathtaking artwork and such a legendary building and St. Peter's basilica was beautiful but other than that, I wasn't that impressed with the place. Maybe I just had a bad experience or was too tired but who knows. Then we got some Old Bridge Gelato (lemon flavored, by the way), and wandered around until dinner. Carbonara and the best beer of the trip called Happy Green Strong!
Day 5- The Colosseum... another one of the world's most iconic building (almost 2,000 years old, by the way) was beautiful, mysterious, historical, and breathtaking. It's been on my list of places to go and it was fantastic. Paletine hill was pretty amazing too. Seeing where the kings and emperor's of Ancient Rome lived was really cool but odd due to the modern art installations throughout the ruins which I appreciated but felt out of place. Then we made it to the Spanish Steps. My dad wanted to sit in the sun and my mom and sisters wanted to go shopping so me and Tyler found a rooftop bar and split a bottle of wine! It was delightful and we were ready for our walking tour which took us to...
1. Spanish Steps- Cool but only for a bit
2. Aqueduct Niro- One of the first aqueduct of Rome
3. Trevi Fountain- Totally awesome but totally ridiculous
4. Roman and Egyptian Pilars- I love all of the art and culture sprinkled throughout the city
5. Pantheon- The most well preserved Roman Temple and one of the highlights of the trip
6. Novu Square- A town square built in an old Roman chariot arena!
The day was over and we were all ready for some sleep but it was one of the best days of the trip!
Day 6- A 5 hour train to Genoa and then a quick one to Santa Margherita took us to our next venue at the Imperial Palace. We checked in and met up with our Aunts, Uncles, Sisters, Brothers, and Cousins and went off to explore the town and had the best meal of the trip. Gnocchi with Prawns in a curry cream sauce. Delicious!!!!! So good it also helped that it was on a raft on clear blue water but ya know. Then we went back to the hotel for the Welcome Cocktail hour and had too many Aperol spritz's and then went out on the town.
Day 7- Beach Day!!!! Relaxed on the deck, had some food, went swimming and snorkeling, and had a photo shoot with my beer before getting ready for the rehearsal dinner in Portofino which is a beautiful and quaint town next to Santa Margherita. Many more Aperol Spritzes and many glasses of wine.
Day 8- We took a ferry from the hotel to Portofino and then Portofino to San Fruttouso which as an old abbey turned into a beach resort and in this cove it is a swim or short kayak to this alcove where 30 below is bronze statue of Jesus Christ staring up at your from the depths of the sea. It was eerily beautiful and such a cool experience! That night we had the wedding ceremony for my cousin Mark and his wife Jessica (#makebatmanlegit, by the way) and then night was over.
Day 9- We checked out of the hotel and took a flight from Genoa to Barcelona (NEVER GO TO THAT AIRPORT, IT SUCKS!... by the way). and checked into our Airbnb. We had lunch at a Tapas place which was great! quinoa avocado salad, patatas bravas, and ceviche. Then we attempted to ride the bikes we rented up to Park Guell but ended up taking a cab. It was a cool place and kinda steeped in mystery as to why it never was completed. I am fascinated with Gaudi and his life and architecture after that day (and more the next day, by the way) then we went to the Magic Fountains and saw the light show before heading to bed.
Day 10- We woke up and went directly to the Sagrada La Familia which was the most amazing church and building that I have ever set foot in and one of the coolest places I've ever been to. Again, the mystery of Gaudi and the level of detail and progressive ideas in his architecture fascinate me. The amount of detail on either sides, the entrance into the "forest" and the light from the stained glass windows made me speechless. I love this building and I cannot wait to go back to it after it is completed in 2026. Then I hopped on the plane to Charlotte and watched "Men in Black: International" (Which was fun but not great, by the way), and "Lego Movie 2" (which was honestly really good, by the way) and of course listened to more of "Fear Inoculum" by Tool. Then Fire Emblem from Charlotte to Phoenix where I finally made it home.
It was a long trip but here were the top 5 experiences of the trip!...
5. Phantom Manor
4. Paletine Hill
3. Christ of the Abyss
2. Pantheon
1. Sagrada Familia
All the Best, Ross
I woke up on Friday, trimmed the tree in my front yard and got my final packing done. My girlfriend took me to the airport and dropped me off. I was flying from Phoenix to London that afternoon. A solid 10 hour flight. I wanted to keep moving so I wandered around the airport until it was time to get on the plane. On the 10 hour flight I played some Fire Emblem: Three Houses (still playing it by the way), I watched "A Star is Born" which was fine but not great, listened to Tool's "Fear Inoculum", and took plenty of naps. I got off the plane at the London Heathrow airport (which is a dumb airport, by the way) and took another flight to Paris. I got an uber from the airport when I landed to my Airbnb and was greeted by Frieza on the side of the building. I grabbed a bite to eat and a beer and met up with my sister and her fiancé.
From there we wandered around Paris and walked by Hotel De Ville, Notre Dame, Tower of St. Jacques, and took the Batobus down the Seine towards the Eiffel Tower. Then we had dinner with my parents and other sister and I had some escargot (which is delicious, by the way) and a beer. Then I passed out in the Airbnb on the pull out couch.
Day 2 took us to the Louvre which is the largest art museum in the world (I have been to the second largest the Hermitage last year, by the way) and saw some beautiful pieces of art including Liberty Leading the People, Raft of Medusa, Winged Nike, The Cheating Ace, Venus de Milo, the Sphinxes of Egypt, that weird guy from the memes, and of course the Mona Lisa. It was an amazing experience and a lot to take in but for me the highlight was Liberty Leading the People. It's such an iconic piece of art and so important to Paris and the French in depiction of one of their most important time periods. Naturally the magnet from Paris was of that painting. After that we had lunch by the Eiffel Tower, walked up the Champs Elysees to the Arc de Triumph, had dinner, and then saw the Eiffel Tower at night which is one of the most beautiful sites. No wonder why it is the most iconic building of all time!
Day 3 took us to Disneyland Paris which was a weird move but super important for me to go to because I wanted too. Now let me say this... We got our tickets at youth price (60 euros a piece) because 3 major attractions were shut down (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Peril, It's a Small World, and Autopia) but during the day many other attractions also broke down including Hyperspace Mountain, Star Tours, and they shut down Fantasyland an hour before the fireworks so it was kind of a 1/2 day park. But regardless here's the schedule of attractions and what I thought (also there were a lot of walk through attractions that were really cool, by the way)
1. Main Street- Just entering the park and seeing the castle itself is an attraction!
2. Big Thunder Mountain- The best one in the world with that underwater section!
3. Phantom Manor- My favorite attraction at the park, such a unique story!
4. Pirates of the Caribbean- which is the same in a different order.
5. Adventure Isle- Skull Rock, Davy Jones Locker, and the Jolly Roger, oh my!
6. Passage of Aladdin- a cute walk through of the story of Aladdin.
7. Jungle Book Jive- The best day time show I have seen at a Disney park!
8. Toad Hall- Fish and Chips for lunch at a lovely themed restaurant!
9. Sleeping Beauty Castle- Stained Glass and the Dragon's Lair
10. Hyperspace Mountain- I wish it wasn't Star Wars themed but it was still legit
11. Philharmagic- Always a fun time but also a weird spot for it!
12. Timon an Pumba- Yassa Chicken for dinner
13. Boot Hill- Cemetery by Phantom Manor
14. Disney Dreams- a beautiful nighttime spectacular
it seems like a full day but I just felt like we didn't get to a lot or couldn't do as much as we could have done but I still thoroughly enjoyed my time there!
Day 4 we flew to Rome and started our afternoon off with some Pizza and more beer. Then we went to the Vatican City. I am catholic but I do not actively go to mass. This was a cool place to visit and had a lot of great artwork and churches but honestly, I was underwhelmed with the experience. The highlights were the Sistine Chapel which has just breathtaking artwork and such a legendary building and St. Peter's basilica was beautiful but other than that, I wasn't that impressed with the place. Maybe I just had a bad experience or was too tired but who knows. Then we got some Old Bridge Gelato (lemon flavored, by the way), and wandered around until dinner. Carbonara and the best beer of the trip called Happy Green Strong!
Day 5- The Colosseum... another one of the world's most iconic building (almost 2,000 years old, by the way) was beautiful, mysterious, historical, and breathtaking. It's been on my list of places to go and it was fantastic. Paletine hill was pretty amazing too. Seeing where the kings and emperor's of Ancient Rome lived was really cool but odd due to the modern art installations throughout the ruins which I appreciated but felt out of place. Then we made it to the Spanish Steps. My dad wanted to sit in the sun and my mom and sisters wanted to go shopping so me and Tyler found a rooftop bar and split a bottle of wine! It was delightful and we were ready for our walking tour which took us to...
1. Spanish Steps- Cool but only for a bit
2. Aqueduct Niro- One of the first aqueduct of Rome
3. Trevi Fountain- Totally awesome but totally ridiculous
4. Roman and Egyptian Pilars- I love all of the art and culture sprinkled throughout the city
5. Pantheon- The most well preserved Roman Temple and one of the highlights of the trip
6. Novu Square- A town square built in an old Roman chariot arena!
The day was over and we were all ready for some sleep but it was one of the best days of the trip!
Day 6- A 5 hour train to Genoa and then a quick one to Santa Margherita took us to our next venue at the Imperial Palace. We checked in and met up with our Aunts, Uncles, Sisters, Brothers, and Cousins and went off to explore the town and had the best meal of the trip. Gnocchi with Prawns in a curry cream sauce. Delicious!!!!! So good it also helped that it was on a raft on clear blue water but ya know. Then we went back to the hotel for the Welcome Cocktail hour and had too many Aperol spritz's and then went out on the town.
Day 7- Beach Day!!!! Relaxed on the deck, had some food, went swimming and snorkeling, and had a photo shoot with my beer before getting ready for the rehearsal dinner in Portofino which is a beautiful and quaint town next to Santa Margherita. Many more Aperol Spritzes and many glasses of wine.
Day 8- We took a ferry from the hotel to Portofino and then Portofino to San Fruttouso which as an old abbey turned into a beach resort and in this cove it is a swim or short kayak to this alcove where 30 below is bronze statue of Jesus Christ staring up at your from the depths of the sea. It was eerily beautiful and such a cool experience! That night we had the wedding ceremony for my cousin Mark and his wife Jessica (#makebatmanlegit, by the way) and then night was over.
Day 9- We checked out of the hotel and took a flight from Genoa to Barcelona (NEVER GO TO THAT AIRPORT, IT SUCKS!... by the way). and checked into our Airbnb. We had lunch at a Tapas place which was great! quinoa avocado salad, patatas bravas, and ceviche. Then we attempted to ride the bikes we rented up to Park Guell but ended up taking a cab. It was a cool place and kinda steeped in mystery as to why it never was completed. I am fascinated with Gaudi and his life and architecture after that day (and more the next day, by the way) then we went to the Magic Fountains and saw the light show before heading to bed.
Day 10- We woke up and went directly to the Sagrada La Familia which was the most amazing church and building that I have ever set foot in and one of the coolest places I've ever been to. Again, the mystery of Gaudi and the level of detail and progressive ideas in his architecture fascinate me. The amount of detail on either sides, the entrance into the "forest" and the light from the stained glass windows made me speechless. I love this building and I cannot wait to go back to it after it is completed in 2026. Then I hopped on the plane to Charlotte and watched "Men in Black: International" (Which was fun but not great, by the way), and "Lego Movie 2" (which was honestly really good, by the way) and of course listened to more of "Fear Inoculum" by Tool. Then Fire Emblem from Charlotte to Phoenix where I finally made it home.
It was a long trip but here were the top 5 experiences of the trip!...
5. Phantom Manor
4. Paletine Hill
3. Christ of the Abyss
2. Pantheon
1. Sagrada Familia
All the Best, Ross
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